ON A day when Anfield gave a nod to its recent, glorious past, it was a glimpse of the future which provided the greater cause for optimism amongst Liverpool FC supporters.

Sami Hyypia, back on Merseyside for the first time in three years, may have earned the day’s loudest cheer, and deservedly so, but the goodwill from the stands did not filter down to the pitch.

The Finn’s Bayer Leverkusen side were second best from first whistle to last as Liverpool signed off their pre-season programme in style. Having secured steady progress in Europe in midweek, Brendan Rodgers’ men should head to West Bromwich Albion for their opening Premier League fixture on Saturday in confident mood.

Raheem Sterling, the teenage winger of whom so much is expected, provided a tantalising preview of what could lie ahead for him, opening his senior Reds account in marvellous style, while there were welcome goals for Lucas Leiva and half-time substitute Andy Carroll, as the Reds made light work of their Bundesliga opponents. Sidney Sam’s excellent late strike provided one bright spot for the visitors, but was the merest of consolations. Hyypia has plenty of positive Anfield memories; this was not one. He cut a deflated figure in his post-match press conference.

Rodgers, by contrast, looks a man who is relishing the forthcoming campaign. Liverpool had impressed in brushing aside FC Gomel on Thursday night, showing cohesion, confidence and a collective mindset. The evidence here was that there will be plenty more to come.

Hyypia, whose name was chanted by the Kop prior to kick-off and then throughout, may be a modern-day Reds legend, but his former club were in no mood for sentimentality.

Rodgers retained seven of the side which had beaten Gomel 72 hours earlier, bringing in Martin Kelly, Sebastian Coates and Jamie Carragher in defence, with Sterling replacing Fabio Borini in his front three.

And it would not take the 17-year-old long to make his mark on his maiden Anfield start.

Less than three minutes had elapsed when Jose Enrique played an astute pass in behind Daniel Schwaab, and Sterling had the strength to hold off the full-back, the ability to cut inside the covering Philipp Wollscheid, and the composure to bend a wonderful finish around Bernd Leno and into the bottom left hand corner of his net from the edge of the penalty area.

It was a golden moment, the kind the youngster has been producing on an increasingly regular basis with Liverpool's reserve and youth teams over the past two years. Buoyed by his own brilliance, and cheered on by a delighted crowd, the Londoner went on to enjoy an excellent afternoon.

Rodgers is clearly a fan, and it was notable that he spoke afterwards of how Sterling is developing a team ethic to add to his obvious individual talent. Expect to see more of the former QPR man over the next few months.

If Liverpool’s opener was a goal for the purists – the Reds had recycled possession impeccably throughout the build up, before switching the play smartly to create the chance – then their second, which arrived on the half-hour mark, owed more to some comically inept defending from their visitors.

There was ingenuity in the manner in which Stewart Downing rolled a free-kick into the feet of Luis Suarez in the penalty area, with everyone in the ground expecting a shot at goal, but when the Uruguayan was dispossessed by Michal Kadlec, the chance should have gone. However, the hapless Czech defender made a horrible mess of his attempted clearance, presenting Lucas Leiva with an empty net six yards out. The Brazilian, who tucked another 45 minutes under his belt as he hurtles impressively towards full fitness, made no mistake.

Rodgers made five changes at half time, affording rests to Suarez, Lucas and Steven Gerrard among others. His reshuffle allowed Andy Carroll the chance to showcase his talents, the England forward having previously been restricted to just 15 minutes’ action this pre-season.

Carroll, persistently linked with a move away from Anfield this summer, might have had his name on the scoresheet on the hour, but headed wide from Jonjo Shelvey’s right-wing cross. He would, however, make amends just six minutes later.

Collecting Charlie Adam’s first-time pass 35 yards from goal, the £35m man spun away from Wollscheid onto his left foot, and drilled a low strike that Leno should have kept out comfortably. The Bayer ‘keeper, though, failed to get his body behind it, allowing the ball to squirm agonisingly into the net.

Leverkusen did muster one moment of magic themselves 15 minutes from time, Sam escaping the attentions of Carragher to rifle a stunning left-footed strike across Pepe Reina from 25 yards, but it was little more than a blot on Liverpool’s copybook.

Rodgers spoke afterwards about how the “ID” of his team is starting to take shape, and it is hard to deny that the Reds’ pressing and passing was impressive.

Joe Allen, the club’s latest signing, was introduced to his new teammates at half-time, and his manager would ideally like to conclude some more business before the month is out.

Rodgers knows that the real hard work for Liverpool starts at the Hawthorns this weekend, and that there are areas of his team’s play which require improvement. He will have been encouraged, however, by what he has seen at Anfield this week.

And if the future is as bright as it looks, then he, and Liverpool, will be in business.